inspiron 1525 keeps shutting down

My 18 month old laptop started shutting down when burning but now shuts down several times a day(even when just in idle). I have used a cleaning spray to clear out any dust - what else can be the problem? I nearly always run it on mains so don't think it can be the battery.

I'm having the exact same problem. My Inspiron is around the same age and is shutting down completely on its own. I've contacted support paid the monthly fee and nothing helped. They had me run diagnostics by hitting F12 multiple times during start up, ran all tests everything passed. Then I ran the next set of hardware tests which included the fan and still everything passed. Everything I read says overheating, but it says my fan is running fine, my laptop just sits on the table, not on top of any fabric or anything. Don't know what to do about this either.

The same happens to my notebook. What can I do? I am tired of having my notebook turning off (it usually happens when I am watching a video, so it's probably the video card getting too hot). I asume it's overheating because the mousetouch thing burns. By the way, it's also an inspiron 1525.

Hey guys , just did a repair on a 1525 with similar problems, Shutting down, freezing, erratic mouse pad ( Very common ).

I did notice the fan was not coming on, so i cooled the CPU with a continious supply of air from my compressor, only so i could do more testing.

at this stage my main problem was an erratic mouse, did all the usual stuff, check cables, new drivers, even did the tape repair someone mention in another forum, Still no go, So i decide to do the full dismantle the first thing i did and this was removed the Media cable the one on the Hinge cover and Boom the CPU Fan came on, the touch pad stopped its erratic behaviour. ( i Know should have disconnected the battery before pulling it apart as my son would say "MY BAD" )

Anyway had the same model so used the hinge cover form that one and no problem, retried the Faulty one no problem, My best guess is the ribbon cable was not seated properly or at a slight angle, I spent hours trying to diagnose this problem all due to a cable not seated properly ( one that has in my opinion nothing to do with the problems the laptop was having) Anyway thought i'd share and hope it helps someone.

- As all other guys/dolls in this forum I have the exact same issue on my 1525 which is now 2 years old.

- Power switch off occurs at any random moment, couple of times per day.

- Power may also switch off during the first diagnostic test (the first test after pressing Fn+on/off-switch) or at any given moment in the System Test.

- IF power stays alive during the diagnostic test, all tests are completed with no error.

- Also multiple system test-runs on the Fan-speed gives always OK.

- CPU temperature appears to be normal (50C) when the issue occurs (also I have fanGUI programming running in background)

Is it possible that this issue issue (sudden fan-stop) also powers down during the low-level diagnostic check?

Now SUPPOSE it was the ribbon cable....is that something I could do?....or does this require a Dell-guy to it? It is not clear to me how to dismantle and find the right cable you are talking about. But if it is just a matter of loosening the right screws, and properly push in this media cable, I might give it a try.

Take a look at your Windows event log to see if there is any messages that may provide a better indication regarding what seems like a thermal management related issue that is causing your laptop(s) to shut down.

Based upon the similar experiences being described by different individuals it seems reasonable to conclude there is a hardware or software problem related to Dell's Inspiron series notebooks versus operator/user error.

I bought a Studio XPS 16 notebook from Dell recently and one issue I am concerned about is when the display lid is raised it partially obstructs the air vent slots, which are located along the rear left of the laptop's case/enclosure.

Ideally there should be no obstruction to venting the heat being generated by a laptop during normal operation and with 20-20 hindsight I believe Dell's engineering staff will agree.

It's battery is almost NEVER recognized by the computer, the battery holds a charge because it will sometimes run when it thinks there is no battery, the original charger shorted out within a year, the replacement shorted a few days ago, and it now shuts down when you tilt the computer back but not when you tilt it forward. I've tried cleaning the connections for the battery and charger with rubbing alcohol. Cleaned up a little dirt and they work fine for about 10 minutes.

To sum it up, this computer runs great (when it feels like it), but overall, it's a piece of *** and i recommend stripping any upgrades you gave it (ram, hard drive, etc) and giving it a good beating like i plan on doing.

A couple months ago I started having a problem with my Inspiron 1525 booting up it was looping and would not start windows. I took it back to best buy where I got it and they said it was the hard drive and charged me $312 dollars to put a new one in. I arrived home and booted up it seemed to be working fine but when I got on line it was only online for about 15 minutes and my computer shut down. I took it back and they are now stating that it is my processor. How can your hard drive and processor both go bad when the computer is only 15 months old. I already payed $312 for a $599 computer to be fixed just over a year later and now they want to charge me another $200 something to send it out and get it fixed. I also know that computers outdate pretty quickly but when you buy one you expect it to last more than a year. Does anyone have any ideas as to what the problem could be. I can never count on being online for any length of time it could be 5 min or 2 hours?

First of all if it was in a continuous loop , i have to ask at what stage , Did windows try to start, Sound to me like a Software problem or driver problem not a hard drive problem and $312 a Bit Excessive , Cost of New 500Gb drive $120 plus 1 hour to reload .

Now the shut down problem, is it only on line or is it 15 min of running, once it has shut down does it restart and run for another 15 min or is it considerably less time.

not enough info , But i doubt it is the CPU , could be heat related or Driver related if its only on line. Does it shut down completely or restart.

And what are you doing on line watching Videos or just browsing , Do some tests and make notes , Maybe install a temp monitoring program and check the fan maybe blow it out with some compressed air , I still think it may be overheating, I presume it is Vista.

As i have experienced this on more than on brand of laptop ,

Just remember Vista is a Pig of an operating system and Some Repairers are not honest , I would consider upgrading to Windows 7 or down grading to XP .

The other day i has a Laptop in a Restart loop due to a Vista Update , I would advise every one to turn of automatic updates once the system is stable and wait for service packs to come out , In the last month i have done at least 10 repairs due to crashing after an automatic update.